The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-11-17

trary to the spirit of republican institu-
tons, and to the intent of the Constitu-
ton to withhold from it the rights and
privileges of Statehood, and to keep it
in subsection TO distant power over
which it has not even a practical con-
troll.
The gentleman cites a number Of in
stances where States have made COM
pacts with the United States. One of
these was when North Carolina coded
TO the Federal government region of
country (Tennessee) condition
of the cession being that
no regulation made or to be
made by Congress shall tend to
emancipate slaves" Another case
cited relates to the Territory of Missis-
sippi, the organic act of which prohib-
tied the importation of slaves into the
Territory from any place out OF the
limits of the United States. a third
case is that of the Territory Of Orleans,
the organic act of which contained a
prohibition against the introduction OF
slaves Except by citizens of the United
States removing into the Territory for
actual settlement, and being at the time
of such removal bona fide owners
of such slave or slaves; and
every slave imported or brought
into the Territory contrary to the
provisions of this act shall thereupon
be entitled to and receive his or her
freedom" When the Territory of Or
leans was admitted into the Union as
the State of Louisiana, Congress i'm
posed various conditions, one being
that the Constitution should provide
for keeping the public records of judi
cisI and legislative proceedings in the
En- lish language. The people were
almost exclusively French, and their
public proceedings had always been con
Quoted and recorded in that language.
The cases of Missouri and Nebraska
are cited, in both of which solemn
compacts were made between the re-
spective States and the United States,
Missouri was admitted to the Union
upon the fundamental condition that a
certain clause of her Constitution
should never be construed TO authorize
the passage of any law "hy which
any citizen of either of the States of this
Union shall be excluded from the en-
ioyment of any of the privileges and
immunities TO which such citizen is en-
titled under the Constitution OF the
United States" Nebraska was COM
PEELED to put in the Constitution
ian article forever irrevocable, without
the consent of the Congress of the
United States" providing, ETC., the case
being similar to that of Utah. From
the precedents cited, the iurist asserts
that it is established that Congress can
prescribe conditions in which new
State shall be admitted into the Union
the conditions being based on the pre-
dicament or situation il Csch State:
that Congress may prescribe the condi-
tons in advance, or the people may
present such conditions IS they
are willing to make; that the
compact may curtail, limit or
diminish the sovereignty of the
people, and that the compact may be
absolute or be made in a form that will
require the assent of Congress to any
change. Hence it follows, that the
proposal of the Constitution for Utah,
whereby the people of that Territory,
if admitted under this Constitution.
would bind themselves never to change
their Constitution in respect to polyg-
amy and bigsmy without the assent OF
Congress, would not be a new and IN
precedented compact, but that it would
be in the same form and the same
terms in which similar compacts have
been made with other new States"
The paper is an exhaustive one, and
answers fully and completely de-
mollshes the objections which have
been urged against the proposed Con
stitution, that it was BOT competent for
the State to make the compact and
limit the sovereignty OF the people. 1t
is the opinion of a profound lawyer and
a humanitar an. II closed as follows
Speaking as citizen OF the United States
and of one of the states Of the Union,
should be unslterably opposed TO a cetsion
to the Federal government of any power to
regulate the marriage relation, in any form,
in the states. In the Territories and in the
District of Columbia, the United States have
now all the authority over the marriage re-
lstion that is neediul. and in respect TO the
Territories more authority than has been
wisely used. should gladly do anything
in my power 20 end what poly gamy remains,
In a merciful auds Christian spirit; and,
speaking as - lawyer have no hesitation 10
Mormon inha bitants of Utah now offer 10
make with the United States would be, In
nv judgment, perfectly valid, consistent
with our system of government, and efficient
for everything that can be desired.